John Burns

John Burns is a British recording engineer best known for his credits with noted bands of the 1970s including Jethro Tull, Clouds, Genesis, John Martyn and reggae acts Burning Spear, Delroy Washington, Jimmy Cliff and Toots & The Maytals.

Life and career

Burns (who is also a guitarist) played in a teenage band with Andy Johns, the engineer and younger brother of Glyn Johns, and Andy Johns got Burns his first job in the industry, as tea-boy and tape operator at Morgan Studios in 1965, at the time when Morgan were doing all of the recordings for Chris Blackwell's Island Records.

Burns graduated to assistant engineer with the Jethro Tull albums Stand Up (1969) and Benefit (1970); his credits in this period include the self-titled album by Blind Faith (1969), Humble Pie, Jethro Tull, Spooky Tooth, Blodwyn Pig, Ten Years After, Quintessence, David Bowie, King Crimson and Donovan. During 1970 he worked as a live engineer for acts including Jimi Hendrix, The Who and Johnny Winter. He was a live sound engineer at the Isle of Wight Festival in 1969. Fairport Convention, Free,